Book Review: Every Day by David Levithan

I haven’t read a book like that in awhile. I absolutely 100% loved this one. This is a beautiful story, written by David Levithan.

This is a story about A. The best way to put it is that he is a wanderer– every day he wakes up in a new body with a new past. He accesses these memories and uses them to get through the day with as little interference as he can to the person’s life. Until one day… when he meets someone that he is irresistibly drawn to.

A and Rhiannon were the constants of this book. We open up with these two characters and we watch how they try to figure out, individually and together. I never once grew annoyed with either of the characters as I often do with the YA books that I read. But what I really loved about this book is that every chapter was a glimpse into someone else’s life. I felt like I knew a version of each person that A inhabited at some point in my own life. I traveled with A through all of those bodies- we were just visitors and we were able to see things from their perspective without losing ourselves. This book holds a great balance of love, self, and perspective. Exactly my cup of tea.

I’ve been in a reading slump as of late. I was reading some good books but nothing that really made me want to devour the words and/or filled me with that “evangelical zeal” that John Green mentions in The Fault in Our Stars. This changed it for me. Every Day is a beautiful story and instead of returning the book back to the owner, I kept it just so I could re-read certain passages… and then basically the whole book again. I highly recommend this so keep an eye out when Every Day hits stores this August.

I leave you with this quote (this is from an advance copy so it is subject to change).

“It’s so hard when you’re in one body to get a sense of what life is really like. You’re so grounded in who you are. But when who you are changes every day- you get to touch the universal more. Even the most mundane details. You see how cherries taste different to different people. Blue looks different. You see all the strange rituals boys have to show affection without admitting it. You learn that if a parent reads to you at the end of the day, it’s a good sign that it’s a good parent, because you’ve seen so many other parents who don’t have the time. You learn how much a day is truly worth, because they’re all so different. If you ask most people what the difference was between Monday and Tuesday, they might tell you what they had for dinner each night. Not me. By seeing the world from so many angles, I get more of a sense of its dimensionality.”

Sigh. What a great book.

Happy Friday and thanks for reading!

Jane

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4 comments on “Book Review: Every Day by David Levithan”

I just read a bit of it from the google preview and I honestly can’t wait to read this book. I enjoyed Will Grayson Will Grayson and The Lover’s Dictionary by Levithan. He has a way with words and I have to say the cover of this book is gorgeous :). I really enjoyed your review. Oh and I went through a reading slump too, but that was because I read two bad books back to back, but I’m happy to say that I think I’m over it for now!

Thank you! You are going to LOVE it. This is definitely one ARC that I will be buying once it pubs (sadly, not said enough by me for other books).

I’ve read Will Grayson, Will Grayson, The Lover’s Dictionary, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, and Lily & Dash’s Book of Dares… and I’m in complete agreement with you, Levithan has a way with words. I’m excited to get to his other works and see what else is coming our way in the future!